Surf Film Festival is back better than ever. + FREE beer at opening nite

The one time a year surfers come to the Doris Duke Theatre is almost here. And this time film curator Gina Caruso and her trusty advisors Eric and Jackie Walden of Chinatown Boardroom have chosen a lineup with a lot to offer people who aren’t into watching epic wave after epic ride. I’ve been watching surf films since Kapahulu Theatre still existed. I’m not trying to brag about how ancient I am, but just saying—kind of got “tubular swells” fatigue. There will be lots of epic surf, fer sure, in films such as the WORLD PREMIERE of The Oxbow Watermen Experience but there are also excellent documentaries that I can’t wait to see, like Out of Place, about surfing in…Ohio. Check the shot of a guy walking in the snow carrying his board in the trailer. (And the filmmaker has a blog—his latest post is about surfing in New Jersey.) And the trailer for Gum for My Boat is captivating, while the trailer for Somewhere Near Tapachula made me cry. The trailer!

Two films have a lot of lovely vintage footage—Clive Neeson’s Last Paradise and Anna Trent Moore’s Wake Unto Blue (she’s the daughter of Buzzy Trent, and edited priceless film shot by Bud Browne). And one IS vintage—1968′s The Innermost Limits of Pure Fun.

There’s even a film that connects to the museum—Hanging Five: Five Surfers—Five Artists, about the artists Andy Davis, Tyler Warren, Julie Goldsetein, Alex Knost, and Wolfgang Bloch. See them at work in their studios, and see them at play—on their longboards.

This year we’re offering an incredible deal—$55 festival pass for 11 screenings. That works out to just $5 a pop. And some of the screenings are double features! Plus, only pass holders are eligible to win this Wade Tokoro board. It’s in my office and I’m looking at the streamlined beauty right now. When you buy a pass, you fill in a form to enter in the drawing that will be held the last night of the festival. Last year a guy visiting from Texas won—come on Hawai‘i peeps, bring the board home this year!

Oh, and did I mention there will be FREE BEER at opening night? (Thank you Kona Brewing Co.!) And this year you can drink free wine too! (Thanks Barefoot Wine + Bubbly!) At opening night last year, we had to turn people away. Guys were making anykine trying to worm their way in. So you should probably buy a ticket in advance. You can get them online. BUY TICKETS.